BALAMURALI DENIED A DECENT FAREWELL

Balamurali denied a decent farewell

Chennai: Carnatic vocal music legend Mangalampalli Balamurali Krishna, who breathed his last on Tuesday at his residence, was not given a fitting farewell. Few persons were there at the crematorium at Besant Nagar here when the great musician’s body was cremated on Wednesday.

Andhra Pradesh Cultural Affairs Minister Palle Raghunath Reddy, who paid homage to the Carnatic maestro, told media persons that the AP Government would put up Balamurali’s bronze statue at a place to be decided by the musician’s family members. Earlier, Jonnavittula Ramalingeswara Rao, well-known Tollywood lyricist, complained that his appeal to the Chief Ministers of AP and Telangana State to talk to Tamil Nadu Government and arrange for a State funeral had fallen on deaf years.

He made an appeal to N Chandrababu Naidu and K Chandrasekhar Rao through the media on Wednesday. However, Raghunath Reddy explained that the AP Government made such an appeal when famous artist and film director Bapu died but the Tamil Nadu Government did not respond properly. The officials of TN Government said that the decision has to be taken by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and she could not be approached in time.

In the wake of the bitter experience, the AP Government did not even try to talk to the Government of Tamil Nadu. Moreover, Jayalalithaa has been at the Apollo hospital for more than two months and there is no question of her giving a decision, the minister explained. Top music director Ilayaraja, top actor Kamal Haasan, playback singer SP Bala Subrahmanyam and former chairman of TTD and General Secretary of YSRPC Bhumana Karunakara Reddy were among those who paid their tributes at Balamurali’s residence.